Tornielli book on Pope Francis publishes first in the world, ahead of schedule

March 27, 2013

Ignatius Press releases first Pope biography today as e-book, April 10th in stores

ATLANTA, March 27, 2013 – The much-anticipated first biography on the new Pope is here, one month ahead of schedule, and the author is Vatican insider, Andrea Tornielli, who as Nicole Winfield of the Associated Press describes, is “one of the best, if not the best, Vatican reporter out there. Period. He is the best-sourced, most accurate and one of the most knowledgeable reporters among the unique band of ‘Vaticanisti’ who travel with the pope, digest theological treatises as bedtime reading and count cardinals and monsignors as friends.”

Available today in English, first as an e-book and in hardcover April 10, “Francis, Pope of a New World” (Ignatius Press, $19.95), is a fascinating, definitive and complete biography on Pope Francis. It provides the keys to understanding the man who was a surprise choice, even a revolutionary choice, for pope. It is the story of why the cardinal electors of the Catholic Church set aside political and diplomatic calculations to elect a pope to lead the renewal and purification of the worldwide Church of our time.

There will be other biographies on the Pope, but none will provide the kind of insight into the new leader of over one billion Catholics as this one.

What led to the election of the first Latin American, first Jesuit pope?

What is the background against which his first papal acts find their context?

What was his family life like and how did his family view his decision to become a priest?

How did Jorge Bergoglio minister as a Jesuit priest and as an archbishop in violent, horrible times?

These questions and more are addressed in the book. In addition, there is invaluable background on Pope Benedict’s resignation and the process of electing Pope Francis.

Tornielli has set the bar high with this biography on Pope Francis. More than a journalist covering a beat, he lives and breathes his subject. “He has been fascinated by the church since he was 14, and it shows. Yes, he has a degree in classic Greek. But more importantly, he knows the Vatican and the people who inhabit it, and uses that knowledge to inform the world about what goes on in the frescoed halls of the Apostolic Palace. If anyone needed evidence, take his reporting of the conclave that elected Pope Francis the 265th Successor of Peter: His reports about the behind-the-scenes negotiations before the conclave were cited by cardinals as the reason for imposing a media blackout on the process. It didn’t work. Tornielli kept on reporting, providing a modicum of transparency on the most secretive of processes,” says Winfield.

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